NPROXX develops mounting for hydrogen train

The use of hydrogen to power trains and buses is leading the way in delivering an emissions-free transport infrastructure for tomorrow.

But the need to integrate high pressure hydrogen storage tanks into traditional forms such as railway carriages and buses produces several new challenges.

Trains, for example, suit a roof-mounted hydrogen storage system. Although for instance in the UK, the number of low bridges and tunnels makes this impossible.

NPROXX has developed an advanced system for mounting hydrogen tanks onto a new regional train being built by a major German manufacturer.

The NPROXX system involves fewer, bigger and more efficient pressure vessels, held in an advanced mounting structure.

This reduces the total number of pressure vessels required and increases the total volume of hydrogen that the tanks can store, thereby giving greater productivity while taking up less space.

NPROXX has developed an advanced mounting system to hold these vessels in place on top of the train.

Traditional roof-mounting systems either strap the vessels to the roof or embed them in a metal frame that itself holds them in place. NPROXX has created a new patented mounting system that is more efficient and stronger.

The cylindrical part of the pressure vessel has been extended over the roof dome to form an envelope shape, and the vessels are mounted on two metal endplates. This approach reduces the weight of the total structure including the supports.

Both the pressure vessels and the mounting system that NPROXX is supplying are designed to match the 30-year lifespan of the train.

The NPROXX hydrogen tanks will support 20,000 fill cycles and the advanced refuelling technology will be able to refuel each train in just about 12 minutes, using specially designed piping and support structures.